Personalizing user experience in a gaming network

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure describes methods and system for personalizing user experience in a gaming network. In particular, the user experience is personalized based on how users are characterized based on their interactions with the gaming network. By using the characterizations, the users are assigned labels that publicly identify the user experience, interest, and proficiency with various video games. Communities are then established based on users having the same labels. Lastly, user generated content can be characterized and promoted based on the characterizations to the appropriate communities.

BACKGROUND Field of Invention

The present invention generally relates to gaming networks. Morespecifically, the present invention relates to personalizing userexperience in a gaming network.

Description of the Related Art

In the past, video games may have been a single-user experience. Withthe increase in multi-player and online capabilities, users areincreasingly becoming connected with other users. In many cases,communities of users interacting in gaming networks are being createdalthough each of the users may be physically located far from eachother. In this way, video games have become more social as players canfind themselves as part of a network with other players who not onlyparticipate in the same game but whom also may share similar experiencesand interests.

User-generated content centered on video games is a growing source ofentertainment. Third party sites (such as Twitch.tv) hosts streamers whocreate live user generated content related to video games they arecurrently playing. Other sites provide other content creators theability to upload their user generated content (such as screen shots,videos, or podcasts) so that others can consume via an on-demand basis.With the vast amounts of on-demand user-generated content that isavailable for user consumption, it can be daunting to figure out whichuser-generated content should be viewed. Some content may not beinteresting or may be poorly produced. Furthermore, each user has theirown interests with what content that user may want to consume—whether itbe based on an interesting game or a preferred content creator.

There can be further improvements that not only connect users with otherusers who may share similar interests in the growing gaming networks butalso provide these users with user generated content that the userswould collectively be more interested in.

SUMMARY OF THE CLAIMED INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention include methods for personalizinguser experience in a gaming network. The method starts by receiving userinformation associated with the gaming network. The user informationincludes user gameplay information associated with one or more videogames in connection with the gaming network. Based on the userinformation, the user is assigned one or more labels. These labelsidentify characteristics about the user. The labels are in turn used toassign the user to different communities that contain other users whoshare the same characteristics. User generated content is thencharacterized and assigned metadata that is used to identify the subjectmatter associated with the user generated content. The user generatedcontent can then be promoted to various communities based on theassociation between the metadata and labels of the users. Based on theviews and feedback related to the promoted user generated contentreaching a pre-determined threshold, the content can be provided astatus of being popular.

Embodiments of the present invention also include systems forpersonalizing user experience in a gaming network. The system includesvideo game servers that host video games associated with the gamingnetwork. Furthermore, the system includes computing devices that areused by users to interact with the gaming network. The system alsoincludes a gaming server that establishes the gaming network. The gamingnetwork receives user information that includes gameplay informationregarding one or more video games associated with the gaming network.The user information is used to assign one or more labels to the user.Using these labels, the user is then assigned to one or more communitiesthat contain other users who share the same assigned labels. Usergenerated content is characterized and assigned metadata that is used toidentify the subject matter of the user generated content. The metadatais then used to promote the user generated content with certaincommunities. Based on the views and feedback related to the promoteduser generated content reaching a pre-determined threshold, the contentcan be provided a status of being popular.

Embodiments of the present invention also include a non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium having embodied thereon a program, theprogram being executable by a processor to perform a method forpersonalizing user experience in a gaming network. The method starts byreceiving user information associated with the gaming network. The userinformation includes user gameplay information associated with one ormore video games in connection with the gaming network. Based on theuser information, the user is assigned one or more labels. These labelsidentify characteristics about the user. The labels are in turn used toassign the user to different communities that contain other users whoshare the same characteristics. User generated content is thencharacterized and assigned metadata that is used to identify the subjectmatter associated with the user generated content. The user generatedcontent can then be promoted to various communities based on theassociation between the metadata and labels of the users. Based on theviews and feedback related to the promoted user generated contentreaching a pre-determined threshold, the content can be provided astatus of being popular.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a system for personalizing user experiences in agaming network.

FIG. 2 is an example computing device used in context of the system forpersonalizing user experiences of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a method for personalizing user experiences in a gamingnetwork.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure describes methods and systems directed atpersonalizing user experience in a gaming network. In particular, theuser experience is personalized based on how users are characterizedbased on their interactions with the gaming network. By using thecharacterizations, the users are assigned labels that publicly identifythe user experience, interest, and proficiency with various video games.Communities are then established based on users having the same labels.With gaming networks expanding to introduce social elements that allowusers to connect with others while playing various video games, thepresent disclosure improves on the this sense of community by moreeffectively connecting users with others who share the same interest orexperiences associated with the gaming network.

Furthermore, the method and systems would also promote particularuser-generated content to specific users (or groups of users) inconnection with the personalization of user experiences in the gamingnetwork. Adjustments can be made to where user generated content ispromoted based on views and feedback. Furthermore identification of usergenerated content that is popular or trending can also be determined.

As described herein, user-generated content pertains to content createdand shared by one or more users associated with the gaming network. Usergenerated content can include blog posts, videos, audio, and screenshots that relate to one or more video games associated with the gamingnetwork. User may create the content for many different reasons such assharing their interest and experiences with others. For example, a usercan document (in a video recording) the user's experience of an eventwithin a video game. The documentation can be then shared with otherusers for many different reasons such as: 1) to promote the game toother users, 2) to promote the user and their expertise in the game, and3) to inform other users how to overcome the event.

With the vast amount of user-generated content available on varioussites (e.g. Twitch, Youtube), it is a challenge to promote certaincontent to the specific users who would be most interested in it.Viewing users may be provided content unrelated or uninteresting therebyproviding little to no impact the user-generated content can have.Furthermore, content creators may drown each other out from the sheernumber of user-generated content that is created for popular games ortopics. Viewing users, at a glance, may be unable to distinguish betweengood content and bad content.

In order to personalize user experience in the gaming network andpromote user-generated content, the present disclosure describes agaming network and associated features useful for characterizing usersand user-generated content. In particular, users can be assigned variouslabels that identify characteristics (e.g. interests, achievements,experiences, skills) about the users that he/she would like to be known.These characteristics can then be used to associate the users with otherusers who share the same characteristics. The use of the sharedcharacteristics is the starting point for communities (or clusters) ofusers that users can connect with while on the gaming network.

Furthermore, with the known communities (or clusters) of users, specificuser-generated content can then be characterized. Metadata can beassigned to the user-generated content identifying the subject matter ofthe content. This metadata is used to identify communities (or clusters)who may be interested in viewing this content. Furthermore,user-generated content can also be promoted and made popular based onthe views and reactions to the content.

FIG. 1 illustrates a system 100 for personalizing user experience in agaming network. The figure illustrates some elements—but should not beinterpreted as being exclusively all possible elements that could becompatible—directed at facilitating personalization of user experiencesin a gaming network. Details about each of the illustrated elements willbe provided below in further detail.

The system 100 includes a gaming network 110 that is used to manage theuser interactions in connection with video games and user generatedcontent associated with the video games. For example, many video gamesmay have multiplayer and/or online features. The gaming network 110 canconnect users (each on their respective computing device 180) and directthem to the corresponding video game servers 170 where theirparticipation in the video game can be carried out. User generatedcontent can be created and stored on the gaming network 110 althoughother content can also be created and stored on social media websitesassociated with the social media servers 190. Since the gaming network110 is also communicatively connected to these social media servers 190,this allows the gaming network 110 to not only be able to retrieveuser-generated content and related information about that content thatcan be used to share the content with different users but also allowsthe gaming network 110 to promote user generated content to others (eventhose not connected to the gaming network) by using social media (e.g.generating posts for social media websites) via the social media servers190.

The gaming network 110 may be associated with and maintained by firstparties—entities that are associated with a particular platform used byusers to participate in platform-specific video games on the gamingnetwork. Other parties (e.g. third parties) may also have their ownseparate gaming networks used in connection with their games. Whilethere may be many different gaming networks 110 each associated withtheir respective video games, there may also be an embodiment where anoverarching gaming network can encompass each and every distinct gamingnetwork. The overarching gaming network could be used to facilitate userinteractions even with other users across different parties orplatforms.

The gaming networks 110 themselves include a variety of differentfeatures that facilitate the personalization of user experience in thegaming network. In particular, the gaming networks 110 includes featuresdirected at characterizing users via the creation and maintenance oflabels 120, organize users within communities (or clusters) 130,generating and storing user-generated content 140, promoting usergenerated content 150, and managing the operation of the video games 160associated with the gaming network 110. The details regarding what eachfeature of the gaming network 110 will be described further below.

The user characterization module 120 is used to characterize userbehavior with respect to video games and subsequently label the useraccordingly. The steps of characterizing and labeling users by the usercharacterization module 120 is generally performed by analyzinginformation about the user, identifying notable characteristics that canbe associated with the user, and assigning labels to the usercorresponding to the identified characteristics.

Information about the user that can be analyzed by the usercharacterization module 120 mainly revolves around user gameplay data.The gameplay data may be captured by the video game servers 170 as theuser participates in the video game. Upon request from the usercharacterization module 120, the video game servers 170 can transmit therelated gameplay information for analyzing. From the gameplayinformation obtained from the video game servers 170, the usercharacterization module 120 is able to detect relevant pieces ofinformation that can be used to identify characteristics of significancefor each user. For example, information such as what games the user iscurrently playing, how long the user has been playing that game, how farthe user is within that game, and how the user is playing the game (e.g.proficiency, role) can all be obtained from user gameplay data. Thisinformation can then be used, for example, to identify the type of gamesthe user is interested in playing at the time, how the user generallyapproaches the game, and whether the user is experienced or experiencedin those types of games.

Additional information that can also be used by the usercharacterization module 120 can include user provided information. Forexample, in order to utilize the gaming network 110, users may need toestablish an authenticated user account. From this user account, usersmay provide information about themselves (as a part of a user profile,surveys, or other questionnaires) that include user preferences andother assertions by the user (e.g. identifying the user's favorite gamesor games previously played). This user information could also be used toidentify the existence of characteristics that correspond to labels thatcould be assigned to the user.

Furthermore, users can also choose to identify or link a social mediaprofile to their user account associated with the gaming network 110.The user characterization module 120, when provided the user's socialmedia, can proceed with scanning the user's social media to identify anyrelevant information used to characterize the user. For example, useractivity such as viewing content or providing feedback about certaingames can at least be used to identify interest with a particular videogame or genre of games. The user characterization module 120 is thusable to retrieve related information from the user's social media andactivity on social media to further identify other characteristics thatcan be associated with labels.

The user characterization module 120 may choose to consider any numberof different sources of user-related information (e.g. gameplayinformation, surveys, social media) to identify characteristics andassign labels for the user. Different sources may be weighteddifferently or provided different prioritization based on the communitythat is being built. For example, the gaming network 110 may considerusing gameplay information about the user as being more significant whencreating a community of users who share an interest in playing aspecific video game on a competitive level. In contrast, a community ofusers who share an interest in playing a specific video game on a casuallevel may have more emphasis on user provided information and/or socialmedia.

Exemplary characteristics that may be identified from user-relatedinformation may include identifying video games the user is currentlyplaying or interested in, the type/genre of games the user enjoysplaying, user specific habits and behavior (e.g. when the user plays,for how long, roles within the games), and user experiences (e.g.achievements, skills). Each of these characteristics may be assigned adifferent standardized label established, for example, by the gamingnetwork 110. It may be possible, however, to have third parties or otherusers introduce additional labels if the existing labels do not cover aparticular characteristic (e.g. new video games, new groups).

With each of the labels, underlying details can be included thatemphasize the type of user information to look for so that the user canbe associated with the correct label. For example, a label indicatingthat the user enjoys playing a certain genre of video games may includelooking for a pre-determined number of different titles associated withthe genre, total amount of game time playing video games of that genre,user proficiency with respect to playing video games of that genre, anduser preferences stated in the user profiles, surveys or social media.These underlying details can be viewed as factors regarding the types ofcollected user information that could be identified and used to supportassigning the label to the user.

Furthermore, these factors may have thresholds identifying thesignificance of the related information that would need to be presentbefore being considered for the label. For example, there may need to begameplay information about the user playing at least 5 different sportsgames, or having a total playtime of over 100 hours in any number ofdifferent sports games before a label associating the user as a sportsgame player can be used.

In an alternative embodiment, the same factors can be evaluated anddifferent thresholds can be assigned useful for identifying the type oflabel that the user should be associated with. For example, a label canbe used to correspond to the user's proficiency in sport-related videogames as being casual, average, or competitive. The information that isevaluated may include the number of different sports video games, theamount of time the user plays sports video games, and proficiency inthose games (e.g. trophies, achievements). Different thresholds can beassigned for casual, average, or competitive players for each of thedifferent information being evaluated. For example, casual players mayconstitute play time of between 0-50, average playtime is between51-100, and competitive is 101 and over.

Further embodiments may evaluate user eligibility with certain labels ona regular basis. For example, users who have a competitive label for aparticular game may need to at least maintain a proficiency level (e.g.rank) within the video game or play the video game a pre-determinedamount of time within a period of time. So long as the pre-requisite ismaintained, the user can keep the corresponding label. However, if theuser's eligibility lapses, the user may be provided the different (moreappropriate) label. This different label can then affect the user'sassignment to different communities on the gaming network 110 as well.

Once achieved, the labels can be associated with the user andsubsequently used (by the communities module 130) to group the userswith others who share similar characteristics. In this way, the gamingnetwork can evaluate and provide improved personalization of the userexperience in the gaming network by having another way to check thevalidity of users who identify with particular characteristics.

The communities module 130 can generate, group, and maintain differentcommunities (or clusters) of users each having similar labels (providedby the user characterization module 120). The aim for the communitiesmodule 130 is to identify a group of users who all share similarinterest, experiences, and/or proficiency with various video games ortopics associated with the gaming network 110. There are countless userseach who have their own interests, playstyles, and experiences. Eventhough users may enjoy playing games by themselves or with friends,being able to connect users with potentially many other users who alsoenjoy the same thing could enhance the user experience playing incertain online or multiplayer games. Furthermore, the ability tocommunicate with other users and share user generated content about thesame topics of interest also support the aim of fostering a moreenjoyable user experience.

Once various labels have been assigned to the user via the usercharacterization module 120, the communities module 130 analyzes thelabels and proposes any number of different communities that the usercould be part of. Each community may have a variety of different labelsassociated with it and membership to the community may require that theuser is assigned those same labels. When provided the possiblecommunities to join, the user at this point can choose to join or denymembership to any of the communities. Because it can be daunting for auser to connect with unknown users associated with the gaming network110, the communities module 130 aims to automatically connect the userto other users who all share similar characteristics.

Although some communities may require the user to have some labelsbefore being assigned to them, other communities are open to everyone.The purpose of the labels, therefore, is to inform the user regardingwhat the community is about and therefore useful as an indicatorregarding whether the community would be a good fit with the user.

As described herein, communities (or clusters) of users are associatedwith one or more labels that are used to identify users who share thischaracteristic. For example, a community can include all users who areinterested in sport video games, and maybe even more specifically thoseusers who are interested in basketball video games. The communities, inbeing assigned labels to identify particular characteristics, can be aplace in the gaming network 110 where users can network and interactwith other users who all share the same characteristic (e.g. interest,experience).

These communities, established by the communities module 130, allowusers who share similar labels to more easily communicate and networkwith other users who play the same video games, play the same type ofgames, or even approach the video game in a similar manner. Communitiesallow users to connect and socialize (for example via a chat serviceassociated with the gaming network 110) with other users who are alsosimilar to them. In situations where a user may not have teammates,communities can also facilitate matching users with other potentialusers (via the gaming processor 160) for multiplayer games.

As described above, membership to communities may be restricted to userswho have certain labels. The gaming network may evaluate the labelsassigned to the user to ensure that the user satisfies the requirementsfor membership with the community. In some cases, as some labels areadded or removed from the user, the user's membership eligibility with acommunity can also change with time. It may be of interest to alsoupdate the user's eligibility related to membership to certaincommunities (e.g. users who are part of the competitive sport video gameplayers community are currently competitive). However, there may also besome communities that only require that the user have the label at onepoint and would thus be eligible for the community even if the label nolonger is applicable (e.g. users who previously played a particularvideo game but no longer play that game). Much for the same reason toensure that the labels properly reflect the user characteristics, theupdating of the membership of the communities can ensure that users aregrouped with other users who share the similar interest. For example,users who may at one point be casual players but transitioned tocompetitive players may be moved to the appropriate community. If theuser decides that playing the game competitively is no longerappropriate and wants to just play the game casually again, the user canthen be moved back to the casual group.

The significance of the grouping within the communities is also becausecommunities can be used as a way to provide user generated contentspecific to those users that could find that content interesting. Sincethere may be any number of different users associated with the gamingnetwork 110 and each of those users may be interested in differentgames, it would be difficult to correctly identify for each user thetype of user-generated content each user would be interested in on anindividual basis. However with communities, the labels can be comparedwith metadata associated with the user generated content to identifywhere the user generated content can be promoted. For example, usergenerated content based on sports video games would be more interestingto users within the sports game community while user generated contentbased on adventure games would be more interesting to users within theadventure game community. Furthermore, the types of user generatedcontent can also directed based on the community and their potentialinterest in the content. For example, user-generated content such asscreenshots and walkthroughs of a video game may be better received by acasual community while user-generated content for tournaments (e.g.multiplayer gameplay) may be more well received by a more competitivecommunity.

The user generated content module 140 facilitates user creation andlabeling of user generated content. As described herein, user generatedcontent can consist of any number of different content that can becreated and shared by the user. Such content includes screen shots,audio recordings (e.g. podcasts), video recordings, live-streams, andtext (e.g. blog posts) associated with video games. The user generatedcontent module 140 can provide an interface associated with the gamingnetwork 110 that allows the user to create, upload, and store the usergenerated content on the gaming network 110.

Once created, the user generated content module 140 can also identifyrelated metadata and assign the metadata to the user generated content.Exemplary metadata associated with the user generated content mayinclude the identity of the content creator, the video game title, thelocation within the video game, the characters within the user generatedcontent, and the event being covered in the user generated content.Information used to assign the metadata may include the actual gameplaydata itself. It may also be possible to utilize other technologies, suchas computer vision, to analyze the substance of what is beingillustrated in the user generated content to properly identify whatmetadata to assign.

The content creator may also be able to submit customized metadata forthe user generated content. Since the user submitted metadata may not bestandardized between different content creators, the user generatedcontent module 140 can aim to synchronize the meaning of the usersubmitted metadata into pre-determined terms. For example, metadataidentifying an “expert play”, “sick play”, “kill streak”, etc . . .could all be associated with a competitive metadata. This associationbetween different user submitted metadata and predetermined terms to beassociated as metadata with the user generated content can beestablished manually at first. However, the user generated contentmodule 140 may also include artificial intelligence programming thatlearns the various user provided terminology and assigns thecorresponding metadata. In situations where the wrong metadata isprovided (e.g. “cool move” is initially identified with a competitivemetadata), user feedback indicating that the user generated content doesnot correspond to the corresponding label can be used to modify theartificial intelligence for assigning subsequent metadata.

The user-generated content promotion module 150 facilitates the gamingnetwork 110 in promoting the user generated content to otherusers—especially users who are part of various communities (orclusters). Furthermore, the user-generated content promotion module 150can also facilitate promoting the user-generated content outside of thegaming network 110, for example, with social media 190 or other websites(e.g. Youtube, Twitch).

The user generated content promotion module 150 facilitates providingthe user generated content to corresponding communities (or clusters)that have labels that coincide with the metadata assigned with the usergenerated content. This is based on the assumption that users enjoyuser-generated content that they also have a current interest in. Thusto best promote user generated content, the user generated contentpromotion module 150 uses the metadata of the user generated content andpromotes the user generated content to the corresponding communities.

The user generated content promotion module 150, after promoting theuser generated content to a community can monitor user views andfeedback related to the user generated content. The views and feedbackcan be used to gauge, for example, whether the user generated content iswell received, interesting, or relevant to that community. Based on thefeedback, the user generated content promotion module 150 could adjustwhat types of content can be provided to the community. Feedback canalso be provided to the user generated content module 140 with respectto how content can be labeled.

At a certain point, user generated content having a certain number ofviews and/or feedback can be identified as trending or popular. At thispoint, the user generated content promotion module 150 could place thiscontent on a separate list that is used to identify all different typesof user generated content that have each been received as beingtrending/popular for a particular segment of users within the gamingnetwork 110. The user generated content promotion module 150 can usethis list of trending/popular user generated content to rank and promotethe user generated content for other users in other communities in thegaming network 110. Further monitoring of views and feedback from thelarger audience of users within the gaming network 110 can adjust theranking and promotion.

The list of trending/popular user generated content can also be used bythe user generated content promotion module 150 to suggest content tovarious users who may not be part of any community. At the very least,the trending and popular user generated content can be used to informusers about existing video games and communities on the gaming network110. Furthermore, the list of trending/popular user generated contentmay also be used to suggest/promote user generated content even tounrelated communities (e.g. promoting content purely on a popularitystandpoint and not based on labels/metadata association).

The list of trending/popular user generated content can also be used formonetization purposes. Knowing that certain user generated content ispopular may inform which user generated content may be worthwhile toincorporate advertisements in. This can incentivize content creators ofuser generated content to create more content but also better qualitycontent that users can enjoy consuming.

The user generated content promotion module 150 can also facilitatepromoting user generated content by providing the user generated contentto social media servers 190. In some cases, the user generated contentcan be provided a corresponding hashtag that corresponds to the variousmetadata associated with the user generated data. Hashtags are generallyused to visibly promote user generated content for others to view. Otherusers, when viewing the user generated content can use that same hashtagto promote the content further or associate other user generated contentwith the original content associated with the hashtag. Therefore, themore the hashtag is shared, the more visibility (e.g. views andfeedback) the user generated content may receive.

Although hashtags may be customized by the user, there is a possibilitythat the user assigned hashtags may differ although user generatedcontent may relate to the same subject matter. Thus the user generatedcontent promotion module 150 may be used to modify or even automaticallyassign terms to the hashtag that correspond to the metadata.

Furthermore, it may be possible for the user generated content promotionmodule 150 to suggest hashtags for consolidating similar user generatedcontent. For example, if two or more different hashtags are used toreference similar content (e.g. the same video game event), thevisibility for each of the similar content may be split. The usergenerated content promotion module 150 can identify possible usergenerated content that are similar using a variety of methods such aslooking at the metadata, gameplay data or utilizing machine vision toanalyze images associated with the user generated content. In this way,user generated content provided from different view points or slightlydifferent locations can be all linked together.

Although the user generated content is about the same subject matter,the subject matter does not become popular/trending because not enoughviews or feedback is received—the views/feedback is split amongdifferent user generated content. In this way, the user generatedcontent promotion module 150 may suggest an overarching term that can beused to more generally describe the user generated content identified tobe similar. Each of the different hashtags can then be associated withthe overarching term. Now when other users view and reference the newoverarching hashtag, all the other user generated content can beassociated with the new term. Users would then be able to view eachsimilar user generated content within that overarching term. In somecases, a ranking within the user generated content can also be used tosuggest from among the similar user generated content that is the mostpopular, for example, based on views and feedback.

By using social media and hashtags, the user generated content can bepromoted to users outside of the gaming network 110 via different socialmedia sources. User views and feedback from the social media sources canthen be monitored and retrieved by the user generated content promotionmodule 150 to update the user generated content's popularity andtrending status within the gaming network 110.

The gaming processor 160 manages user connection with other users on thegaming network 110. This includes obtaining necessary information fromthe video game servers 170 to facilitate the online and/or multiplayerfeatures associated with the games the users are participating in. Theinstances of the video game could be run on the gaming network 110.However, the gaming processor 160 can also direct the users to theappropriate game servers 170 and have the game servers 170 host theonline and/or multiplayer instances that the users participate in.

There may be many different video game servers 170 each associated witha corresponding different video game compatible with the gaming network110. A particular video game server 170, for example, may have all theinformation needed to initiate and manage instances of a video game thatusers participate via the online and multi-player features of thosevideo games. It may also be possible that the gaming network 110 caninitiate and manage the instances of the video by obtaining informationfrom the video game server 170.

The computing devices 180 are used by the users to connect with thegaming network 110 and participate in the various video games hosted bythe video game servers 170. Details about the features of the computingdevice 180 illustrated in the figure are provided in further detailbelow in FIG. 2

FIG. 2 is an example computing device 200 used in context of the systemfor personalizing user experience in the gaming network of FIG. 1. Thecomputing device 200 (which in some cases may also include other typesof computing devices such as desktops, laptops, tablets, gaming console,and mobile devices) is a device that users can utilize in order toparticipate with the gaming network as illustrated in FIG. 1.

The computing device 200 may include various elements as illustrated inFIG. 2, however, it should be noted that the elements are exemplary andthat other embodiments may incorporate more or less than the elementsillustrated. With reference to FIG. 2, the computing device 200 includesa main memory 202, a central processing unit (CPU) 204, at least onevector unit 206, a graphics processing unit 208, an input/output (I/O)processor 210, an I/O processor memory 212, a controller interface 214,a memory card 216, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface 218, and anIEEE 1394 interface 220, an auxiliary (AUX) interface 222 for connectinga tracking device 224, although other bus standards and interfaces maybe utilized. The computing device 200 further includes an operatingsystem read-only memory (OS ROM) 226, a sound processing unit 228, anoptical disc control unit 230, and a hard disc drive 232, which areconnected via a bus 234 to the I/O processor 210. The computing device200 includes at least one tracking device 224.

The tracking device 224 may be a camera, which includes eye-trackingcapabilities. The camera may be integrated into or attached as aperipheral device to the computing device 200. In typical eye-trackingdevices, infrared non-collimated light is reflected from the eye andsensed by a camera or optical sensor. The information is then analyzedto extract eye rotation from changes in reflections. Camera-basedtrackers focus on one or both eyes and record their movement as theviewer looks at some type of stimulus. Camera-based eye trackers use thecenter of the pupil and light to create corneal reflections (CRs). Thevector between the pupil center and the CR can be used to compute thepoint of regard on surface or the gaze direction. A simple calibrationprocedure of the viewer is usually needed before using the eye tracker.

Alternatively, more sensitive trackers use reflections from the front ofthe cornea and that back of the lens of the eye as features to trackover time. Even more sensitive trackers image features from inside theeye, including retinal blood vessels, and follow these features as theeye rotates.

Most eye tracking devices use a sampling rate of at least 30 Hz,although 50/60 Hz is most common. Some tracking devises run as high as1250 Hz, which is needed to capture detail of very rapid eye movement.

A range camera may instead be used with the present invention to capturegestures made by the user and is capable of facial recognition. A rangecamera is typically used to capture and interpret specific gestures,which allows a hands-free control of an entertainment system. Thistechnology may use an infrared projector, a camera, a depth sensor, anda microchip to track the movement of objects and individuals in threedimensions. This user device may also employ a variant of image-basedthree-dimensional reconstruction.

The tracking device 224 may include a microphone integrated into orattached as a peripheral device to computing device 200 that capturesvoice data. The microphone may conduct acoustic source localizationand/or ambient noise suppression. The microphones may be usable toreceive verbal instructions from the user to schedule, retrieve anddisplay content on the computing device 200.

Alternatively, tracking device 224 may be the controller of thecomputing device 200. The controller may use a combination of built-inaccelerometers and infrared detection to sense its position in 3D spacewhen pointed at the LEDs in a sensor nearby, attached to, or integratedinto the console of the entertainment system. This design allows usersto control functionalities of the computing device 200 with physicalgestures as well as button-presses. The controller connects to thecomputing device 200 using wireless technology that allows data exchangeover short distances (e.g., 30 feet). The controller may additionallyinclude a “rumble” feature (i.e., a shaking of the controller duringcertain points in the game) and/or an internal speaker.

The controller may additionally or alternatively be designed to capturebiometric readings using sensors in the remote to record data including,for example, skin moisture, heart rhythm, and muscle movement.

As noted above, the computing device 200 instead can be implemented as ageneral-purpose computer, a set-top box, or a hand-held gaming device.Further, similar user devices may contain more or less operatingcomponents.

The CPU 204, the vector unit 206, the graphics processing unit 208, andthe I/O processor 210 communicate via a system bus 236. Further, the CPU204 communicates with the main memory 202 via a dedicated bus 238, whilethe vector unit 206 and the graphics processing unit 208 may communicatethrough a dedicated bus 240. The CPU 204 executes programs stored in theOS ROM 226 and the main memory 202. The main memory 202 may containpre-stored programs and programs transferred through the I/O Processor210 from a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or other optical disc (not shown) using theoptical disc control unit 232. The I/O processor 210 primarily controlsdata exchanges between the various devices of the computing device 200including the CPU 204, the vector unit 206, the graphics processing unit208, and the controller interface 214.

The graphics processing unit 208 executes graphics instructions receivedfrom the CPU 204 and the vector unit 206 to produce images for displayon a display device (not shown). For example, the vector unit 206 maytransform objects from three-dimensional coordinates to two-dimensionalcoordinates, and send the two-dimensional coordinates to the graphicsprocessing unit 208. Furthermore, the sound processing unit 230 executesinstructions to produce sound signals that are outputted to an audiodevice such as speakers (not shown).

A user of the computing device 200 provides instructions via thecontroller interface 214 to the CPU 204. For example, the user mayinstruct the CPU 204 to store certain information on the memory card 216or instruct the computing device 200 to perform some specified action.Example controllers associated with the controller interface 214 mayinclude a touch-screen, keyboards and game controllers.

Other devices may be connected to the computing device 200 via the USBinterface 218, the IEEE 1394 interface 220, and the AUX interface 222.Specifically, a tracking device 224, including a camera or a sensor maybe connected to the computing device 200 via the AUX interface 222,while a controller may be connected via the USB interface 218.

FIG. 3 is a method 300 for personalizing the user experience in thegaming network. By characterizing and labeling each users, communitiesof users can be formed who all share similar interests and experiencesin various video games associated with the gaming network. Furthermore,user generated content, created with the gaming network, can also beassigned metadata accordingly so that the user generated content can bepromoted to the appropriate communities. As the user generated contentbecomes more popular (or trends) based on views and feedback from theinitial community promotions, the user generated content can then bepromoted to other users outside the initial proposed community.

In step 310, the gaming network retrieves user-related information.Gameplay information, user provided information, and user social mediainformation can all be obtained and analyzed to identify the types ofcharacteristics the user may have with respect to various video gamesassociated with the gaming network. Different weights may be assigned tothe different sources based on the importance of certaincharacteristics.

In step 320, the gaming network assigns labels to the users. Labels areused to identify the characteristics associated with the user. Eachlabel has a corresponding characteristic that has been identified fromthe use-related information.

Some labels may require a pre-determined threshold before being able toassign the label to the user. For example, a competitive label mayrequire the user perform at a certain proficiency within the game.Furthermore, user labels can be updated and modified on a regular basisto ensure that the current characterizations for the user areup-to-date.

In step 330, the gaming network assigns users to different communities.The accuracy of the labels is important because the labels are used topropose which communities the user should become part of. Somecommunities may be associated with a variety of different labels andjoining those communities may require the user to have a pre-requisitenumber of those labels. Other communities may only require at least onelabel while others only provide labels as a suggestion identifying thetype of users the user would be interacting with. With the feature ofcommunities on the gaming network, users are able to join any number ofdifferent communities and in turn be able to connect with differentusers who potentially share the same interest, experience, or expertisewith video games.

In step 340, the gaming network assigns metadata to characterize usergenerated content. User generated content can be generated on the gamingnetwork. However, user generated content can also be retrieved fromother sources (e.g. uploaded onto social media servers such as Youtube).When the gaming network receives user generated content to be promotedto users, the gaming network first characterizes the user generatedcontent. The characterization is needed so that the gaming network canidentify relevant groups of users who may be interested in viewing theuser generated content.

By analyzing the contents of the user generated content (e.g. thegameplay data), metadata can be assigned to the user generated contentthat seeks to summarize the subject matter of the content. The metadatacan similar to or at least correspond to labels used to identifycharacteristics of the users associated with the gaming network. Byusing the metadata, user generated content can be matched with varioususers and communities in hopes of providing the content to users whowould most likely find the content interesting.

In step 350, the gaming network promotes user generated content to thecommunities based on the metadata. There may be a pre-definedcorrelation between different metadata and labels. Once the usergenerated content is provided to the communities for viewing, the gamingnetwork can monitor the views and feedback from the users whom the usergenerated content was promoted to in order to identify whether thecontent should be deemed popular/trending.

The views and feedback can also be used to adjust associations betweenthe metadata assigned to the user generated content and the users orcommunities having particular labels that may find the contentinteresting. For example, if a particular association between metadataand labels yields a consistently low view count or has negativefeedback, this may be indicative that the content is not popular withusers who share that label. Other labels and communities can then beexplored to find a more appropriate matching.

In step 360, the gaming network monitors the user generated content forpopularity and trending status. Once views and feedback for usergenerated content reaches a pre-determined threshold, the gaming networkcan identify such content as being popular or trending. At this point,the user generated content can be stored on a list with other popularand trending content. This list can be used, in step 370, by the gamingnetwork to promote these specific user generated content with otherusers outside of the initial community. In some cases, the usergenerated content can be posted on social media (via transmissions tothe social media server) so that users outside of the gaming network canview the user generated content. Based on the monitored views andfeedback, the gaming network can gauge the popularity and trendingstatus of the user generated content.

The foregoing detailed description of the technology herein has beenpresented for purposes of illustration and description. It is notintended to be exhaustive or to limit the technology to the precise formdisclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light ofthe above teaching. The described embodiments were chosen in order tobest explain the principles of the technology and its practicalapplication to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilizethe technology in various embodiments and with various modifications asare suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that thescope of the technology be defined by the claim.

What is claimed:
 1. A method for personalizing user experience in agaming network, the method comprising: receiving user informationassociated with a gaming network, wherein the user information includesuser gameplay information with one or more video games associated withthe gaming network; assigning one or more labels to a user based on thereceived user information, wherein the labels identify characteristicsassociated with the user based on the user information, and wherein eachlabel includes a number of pre-requisites that need to be satisfiedbefore the label can be assigned; assigning the user to one or morecommunities based on the assigned labels, the communities containingother users who share the same characteristics; characterizing usergenerated content, wherein the user generated content is assignedmetadata that identifies subject matter of the user generated content;promoting user generated content to corresponding communities using theassigned metadata of the user generated content; and monitoring viewsand feedback of the promoted user generated content at the communities,wherein the promoted user generated content is provided a status ofbeing popular if the views and feedback satisfy a pre-determinedthreshold.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the received userinformation also includes user social media activity.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the received user information also include user profileinformation that includes user preferences.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein different sources of the received user information can beweighted differently, the weights dependent on the one or more labelsbeing assigned to the user.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the numberof pre-requisites include requirements that have different thresholds,and wherein achieving certain thresholds allow the user to be assigned adifferent label.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the community haspre-requisites regarding specific labels that need to be achieved beforethe user can be assigned to the community, and wherein assignment to thecommunity includes evaluating the labels assigned to the user to confirmthat the user satisfies the pre-requisites associated with thecommunity.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the promoted user generatedcontent is also stored on a separate list of popular content when theuser generated content is provided the status of being popular.
 8. Themethod of claim 1 further comprising further promoting the popular usergenerated content by providing the popular user generated content tosocial media and associating the popular user generated content with acorresponding hashtag.
 9. The method of claim 8 further monitoring thepromoted popular user generated content on social media and updating thestatus of being popular based on the further monitoring.
 10. A systemfor personalizing user experience in a gaming network, the systemcomprising: video game servers that host video games associated with agaming network; computing devices, the computing devices used by usersto interact with the gaming network; and a gaming server that includesinstructions stored in memory and a processor that executes theinstructions to establish a gaming network that: receives userinformation associated with the gaming network, wherein the userinformation includes user gameplay information with one or more videogames associated with the gaming network, assigns one or more labels toa user based on the received user information, wherein the labelsidentify characteristics associated with the user based on the userinformation, and wherein each label includes a number of pre-requisitesthat need to be satisfied before the label can be assigned, assigns theuser to one or more communities based on the assigned labels, thecommunities containing other users who share the same characteristics,characterizes user generated content, wherein the user generated contentis assigned metadata that identifies subject matter of the usergenerated content, promotes user generated content to correspondingcommunities using the assigned metadata of the user generated content,and monitors views and feedback of the promoted user generated contentat the communities, wherein the promoted user generated content isprovided a status of being popular if the views and feedback satisfy apre-determined threshold.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein thereceived user information also includes user social media activity. 12.The system of claim 10, wherein the received user information alsoinclude user profile information that includes user preferences.
 13. Thesystem of claim 10, wherein different sources of the received userinformation can be weighted differently, the weights dependent on theone or more labels being assigned to the user.
 14. The system of claim10, wherein the number of pre-requisites include requirements that havedifferent thresholds, and wherein achieving certain thresholds allow theuser to be assigned a different label.
 15. The system of claim 10,wherein the community has pre-requisites regarding specific labels thatneed to be achieved before the user can be assigned to the community,and wherein assignment to the community includes evaluating the labelsassigned to the user to confirm that the user satisfies thepre-requisites associated with the community.
 16. The system of claim10, wherein the promoted user generated content is also stored on aseparate list of popular content when the user generated content isprovided the status of being popular.
 17. The system of claim 10 whereinthe gaming server further promotes the popular user generated content byproviding the popular user generated content to social media andassociating the popular user generated content with a correspondinghashtag.
 18. The system of claim 17 wherein the gaming server furthermonitors the promoted popular user generated content on social media andupdating the status of being popular based on the further monitoring.19. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having embodiedthereon a program, the program being executable by a processor toperform a method for personalizing user experience in a gaming network,the method comprising: receiving user information associated with agaming network, wherein the user information includes user gameplayinformation with one or more video games associated with the gamingnetwork; assigning one or more labels to a user based on the receiveduser information, wherein the labels identify characteristics associatedwith the user based on the user information, and wherein each labelincludes a number of pre-requisites that need to be satisfied before thelabel can be assigned; assigning the user to one or more communitiesbased on the assigned labels, the communities containing other users whoshare the same characteristics; characterizing user generated content,wherein the user generated content is assigned metadata that identifiessubject matter of the user generated content; promoting user generatedcontent to corresponding communities using the assigned metadata of theuser generated content; and monitoring views and feedback of thepromoted user generated content at the communities, wherein the promoteduser generated content is provided a status of being popular if theviews and feedback satisfy a pre-determined threshold.